


Twenty Ways To Be Painful

by HoneyNutFemios93



Category: No Fandom, Original Work
Genre: Animal Sidekick, Bondage, Female Friendship, Gen, Implied/Referenced Underage Prostitution, Male Protagonist, Male-Female Friendship, Multi, Non-Consensual Bondage, One-Sided Relationship, Plantbending, Plants, Possibly Unrequited Love, Predicament Bondage, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Strangers to Lovers, This was originally Etrian Odyssey Fan Fiction, Unrequited Crush, Unrequited Love, Vines
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-07
Updated: 2019-12-08
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:08:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21702727
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HoneyNutFemios93/pseuds/HoneyNutFemios93
Summary: [OLD FIC] A farmer is forced to adventure by his greedy father in order to save the farm from bankruptcy. There, he makes friends, fights monsters and possibly falls in love.
Relationships: Original Character(s) & Original Character(s), Original Female Character/Original Female Character, Original Female Character/Original Male Character





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> As I said before, this used to be Etrian Odyssey fan fiction that I began to rebuild from the ground up as an original story. I still haven't finished the second chapter of this story but once I do, I want to post it here as well.

Twenty Ways to Be Painful 

The Remake… Sort of.

\-----

This is a tale of a strapping young group of adventurers. Viewer discretion is advised.

\-------

A blond farmer boy was sitting awkwardly in a chair next to some more talkative warriors. He can see how formidable they are compared to him with their longswords and double-barreled pistols, which made him shiver. He only had his pitchfork and a soft wooly lamb. He felt unwelcomed as there weren't any other people like him in this dark looming room. 

As the lamb in his hand shook out and tried to search for an exit, you can almost hear him scream, “Uriel! No!”

He chased after the lamb as it was looking around the room awkwardly, but anxious. He then bumped into a heavily armored woman with ginger-colored hair. She glowered at him as if angered.

The boy almost froze as the lamb went back towards him.

“Elyon, you’re scaring him! Quit it!” 

The boy turned to see a dark-haired kunoichi, with a lot of pockets for her tricks and techniques. She was wearing a warm red scarf, which reminded him of how he was put up to this in the first place.

\------

A couple of days prior, a peg-legged man in a warm red scarf walked up to the blond boy as he was tending to the sheep. The blond boy was so happy to be with these gentle creatures, but that didn't stop the father from pushing them away and addressing the boy so crudely.

“Son, I want you to go explore. Leave the farm work to your old man. He’s seen worse days.” A middle-aged farmer told the boy.

“But father! Didn't you lose mother in a failed expedition? What about you?!” The boy wept almost frustrated with his father.

“Listen. I understand how much it pains me to send you off like this, but you’re able-bodied and an adult now, and we need the gold. This farm? It’s going to go down. If we don’t make anything fast, you’ll be homeless. As for me, I’ll probably die in a hospital bed. And this peg leg won’t hold me up much longer anyway.” He said, sighing as he sat down, massaging his stubble of a right leg.

The boy’s eyes widened as he asked his father, “What are you talking about? We made 500 gold recently selling our goat milk. That isn’t enough to save it?”

“If you were a girl, I’d sell you off to some brothel to make ends really meet. But son, I honestly wished I chose a better job after that failed excursion. This farmer shit? I am regretting it every day. I don’t want you living dirt poor selling some damn milk.” The older farmer groaned.

“...I can't believe you are telling me this, father…” The boy began weeping.

“This farming nonsense softened you up. It’s disgusting. So I’m sending you to an adventurer’s Guild in a town further South. If you make it out of there alive without getting a peg leg and with 1,000,000 gold on your back, I’ll help you with this farm when you get back. Otherwise, I am selling this farm and heading out to the ocean. At least there’s some action catching legendary fish schools.”

\------

The boy shook his head. He couldn't believe his father. He gave him such a crude ultimatum. He at least let him keep the shivering lamb now cowering before these brash warriors and bold soldiers ready to venture out into a dungeon. 

“Hey. Are you okay? What's your name?” The kunoichi from before asked the boy.

“I-I’m Ulrick. This here is Uriel. We’re here to become adventurers by the request of my father.” The boy said, picking up his lamb and bowing timidly. 

“A farm boy? Him? An adventurer? Pathetic.” The heavily armored woman laughed, as she steadied her Lance and shield proudly. 

“Don’t listen to Elyon. She’s just as anxious as I am. My name's Ortega. We are hoping to work together on our first adventure.” The kunoichi said lifting her hand up to shake Ulrick’s hand. 

Ulrick shook it gently.

“T-thanks.” Ulrick softly murmured. 

He was feeling his heart race around Ortega. He didn't know what to say except he hoped to join her guild as well.

“Why hello everyone! We are now setting up Guild Arrangements! Step right on up if these are your numbers!” An announcer declared.

Ulrick can feel his stomach race. He looked down at a paper made especially for him with the number 13 written down on it. He gulped. All he could do was pray.

“13! 77! 78! 95! 96! If we called your number please step forward!”

Ulrick rose up as he stepped forward to the Guild master. He saw Ortega and Elyon step forward as well as two other faces. He saw the two faces initially bickering back and forth now standing readily.

“Okay, a farm boy like you adventuring is new. What’s your name, kiddo?” The Guild Master asked. He was writing the information down quietly.

“I-I am Ulrick! Ulrick of Shamrock Hills! M-my specialty is herding sheep and milking the goats… This is my first day of being an adventurer, so I hope not to disappoint!” He squeaked. The lamb known as Uriel made a soft maa-ing sound that echoed Ulrick in an excited tone.

“Oh. You’re Eustace's son. It’s a little relieving to see his son more modest and reserved. Shame he quit adventuring, but with his insecurity about his leg, I can't blame him too much. Try not to make the same mistakes as your Dad, okay Ulrick?”

The Guild Master recognized him. Ulrick wanted to shake his head. It wasn’t by his choice that he is here, but his father's. He looked to the others.

“I am Ortega from the kingdom of Valha. I am adventuring like my parents before me. They were exploring the landscape surrounding Valha, and I am here to adventure in the main continent.” Ortega said proudly.

“Oh wow. I didn’t think we’d have Valhans in our Guilds. Pleasantly surprised. I hope you enjoy your stay here and survive what we have to offer Ortega.” The Guild Master greeted Ortega with an excited gleam in his eyes.

“I am Elyon. I am also from Valha. I am here for a different reason though. I am here to take down any monsters and bandits that stand in my way.” Elyon announced herself rather coldly.

“Ah. Right.” The Guild Master coughed awkwardly. 

Next up were the less familiar faces.

“How do you do? I am Isami. I am the Princess of Jingai Springs in the Eastern Continent of Aisha. I am sadly from a country running out of resources and I have decided to see what we can find here as an adventurer.” A red-haired beauty bowed quietly. 

Ulrick felt pity for the girl. She was a woman that also was here due to financial difficulty in her life.

“And I am Adam. I am a future suitor to the princess, and a sorcerer willing to help whatever distressed damsels call my name.” A purple-haired boy that made Ulrick do a double-take said in a sultry voice.

The red-haired girl punched the guy in the gut. Ulrick shuddered. Uriel maad worryingly for the guy.

Come to think of it, Ulrick didn’t find Adam that attractive. He had dark bags under his one visible eye. He was scrawny, and his purple hair while well kept and straight was a muted lilac kind of purple and not the regal kind of purple he might come to expect. Ulrick then again was a guy so he probably had trouble seeing why he had a chance with Isami.

“Please forgive this idiot. He follows me blindly into trouble.” Isami said with a huff in her irritated expression towards Adam.

“What a colorful group of people. This will be exciting. Here is hoping you all don’t die out there. Also, for your first quest… you guys must find a missing princess. Could you all do that for the King of the land of Flores? It’ll help us, adventurers, greatly to make great bonds with other kingdoms.” The Guild Master said as he gave the group a pamphlet. 

“Flores is a tropical country, isn't it? This will be fun!” Adam said excitedly.

“Oh yeah. Valha is an island close to Flores, so we at least share some cultural background. It might be a good advantage when dealing with a missing princess from that country.” Ortega said as she looked at Elyon.

“I thought we were going to kill someone.” Elyon gruffed disappointedly.

“That’s for when the Guild is finally official.” The Guild Master looked at Elyon, almost starting to get annoyed with her bloodlust. 

With a Guild set up, they were on their first quest.

They started their search in Gargamello Woods, much to Ulrick’s dismay as he paused uncomfortably. 

“Ulrick? What's wrong?” Ortega asked concerned.

“I… my…” Ulrick tried to stay composed. In Ulrick's mind, he can remember the story of how his father lost his leg in Gargamello Woods. That wasn’t even the worse part. He lost his mother in those woods as well, with Ulrick remembering his father coming back from the woods with an arm reminiscent of his late mother, even holding the engagement ring his father gave his mother. 

“The little farmer boy should stay back like the wuss he is. Leave the real search to the rest of us.” Elyon snarled impatiently towards Ulrick.

Ulrick gulped.

“How about you leave Uriel back in the Guild House. She’ll at least be safe.” Isami told Ulrick in a calm voice.

“N-No… Everyone back there is in need of money. Uriel could be eaten off…” Ulrick shook his head saying this as if he pictured a worst-case scenario for the lamb.

“It’s either eaten by humans or eaten by monsters in the woods. If she is in these woods, she could watch us die. I hope you are prepared for that.” Elyon replied.

Elyon started walking into the woods. Ulrick was being pulled by the motivation beaming out of Ortega. 

“Let’s keep going. Your father didn't send you here to fondle spiders in your hand.” Ortega explained trying to make Ulrick laugh. It backfired. Ulrick can now picture a hand covered in spiders that could bite him. He was shedding tears in fear.

Though things were quiet in the large, lush woodlands. Ulrick can spot himself breathing in the clean fresh air surrounding them. He can look up and see the long tall canopies above him and think back to happier times when he used to travel alongside sheep to harvest festivals. It didn't take long until Uriel cried out and a stick cracked under their feet that Ulrick was out of this nostalgic trip. 

There were giant eyes glaring down at the party. They belonged to something Ulrick can remember his father telling him about. They were the clawed creatures that destroyed his father’s adventuring career. They were the teeth that tore apart his family. Ulrick was frozen in fear. Will these great lynxes tear him apart as well?

The lynx roared angrily.

“God damn it! We shouldn't have taken that God damn lamb with us!” Isami said looking at Uriel with frustration and disappointment. 

The lamb was running away almost using its instinct to save its own life. 

“Ulrick! Grab that lamb of yours and run!” Isami bellowed.

“Don’t worry! We’ll follow after you!” Ortega screamed back at Ulrick.

“Let me handle these guys.” Elyon licked her lips ecstatically. She readied her lance and shield. She was ready to kill them, but being prepared to fight doesn't just make you invincible. 

She was able to stab through one of the lynxes but another lynx jumped from behind Elyon and tore her armor off. Ulrick looked at Uriel. The third lynx was after her now.

Ulrick screamed, lifting his pitchfork and used it to scare the lynx off. The lynx was pierced by the pitchfork, and its roar in pain made it tell the fourth lynx that Ulrick was a threat.

“Ulrick! I told you to run!” Isami screamed. 

“Leave him be, my sweet. Besides. He’s standing his ground. His skills with that pitchfork prove just as useful as Elyon's skills with the lance.” Adam said as he used a fire attack to burn the skin off the fifth lynx.

“Speaking of which. We need to get them off of Elyon and fast!” Ortega roared.

Ulrick looked at the team and realized this was the same situation his father was in.

Ortega’s dexterity only helps her avoid the lynxes so far. Isami was the healer but she needs to concentrate in order to heal properly using her Jingai techniques. Adam was a sorcerer and a possibly squishy one at that. Ulrick looked at Uriel who was meekly maa-ing in worry.

“Take care of yourself and run back to the Guild House, little Uriel. I’ll see you soon.” Ulrick wept.

Uriel started to run again, post haste outside of the woods Ulrick prayed to God. 

He raised his arms, as a lynx pounced on him. Ulrick blacked out. He was in tremendous pain.

When he woke up, Uriel was resting on him, finally at peace and he was at an Inn hospital bed. At first, he thought it was all a bad dream until he got up and winced from the sharp pain that was most certainly unreal to him.

Did he survive? But how?

He looked to the hospital bed next to him. He saw Elyon wasn't there with him. He was confused. Elyon was the paladin doing her job. Did she really die on the others?

He looked outside the door. Ortega was crying over Isami’s shoulder. The Innkeeper shook their head before noticing Ulrick was awake.

“Oh! Hello Ulrick. This is probably the least likely you would have thought of meeting me, but I am the Innkeeper, Amanda. Nice to see you are recovering well. Your little lamb friend was also really strong. Usually lambs her age would have died in shock from the sight of blood. But she was a trooper. The best part. She called forth the strongest Guild in the continent to help save you guys! If only I can remember their name.”

Ulrick nodded. He saw Uriel resting softly on him. Ulrick grinned. He was relieved. At least she was safe and he can trust the Guild house with her care. 

“You were lucky. Usually, the lynxes go straight for the trachea and kill you there but it seems you were able to block them really well.” Amanda said, “Not like your Hoplite, Elyon. By the time Isami found her she was far from revival.”

Ulrick groaned. He was feeling upset that there was still a casualty. He looked at his feet. They were still on him. He must feel lucky.

“You guys can’t really go adventuring until this little farmer boy recovers. He was brave to take on that lynx though. I know how those animal caretaker types are, they are usually more sensitive like the animals they care for.” Amanda said as she smiled awkwardly.

Ulrick feebly laughed nervously. 

“I understand. We’ll stay with him until then. Hell, we can probably home our skills this way.” Ortega smiled awkwardly as well as telling the group this.

“That Guild that saved us… Should we tell Ulrick about them?” Adam asked Isami.

“In due time. Right now, Ulrick shouldn't worry about that. It might stress him out.” Isami replied cautiously.

“You’re so considerate. It’s stuff like that I love about you.” Adam purred as he hugged Isami closely. Isami pushed him off in retaliation.

“Stop that,” Isami growled irritatedly.

Ulrick looked down. He was feeling very anxious about his recovery. With Uriel safe, Ulrick felt like he could sleep soundly, but he was having trouble doing so.

When he woke up, it was dark outside. He noticed Ortega was the only one still sitting with him in the room. Ulrick noticed a book in her hand. He gently pulled the book out with his good arm and began to take a look at it more carefully.

It was a small and simple book. The leatherwork was not as professional as Ulrick would expect, far from it. However, it was intricate and the leather cover was soft and cool to the touch. 

He opened the first page and recognized some interesting characters from land that Ulrick was barely familiar with thanks to Ortega and Elyon. This was a book about the land of Valha. The writing in the book was clearly from a Valhan’s alien yet familiar ink, a faded silver color presumably from the pigment of some of the fish that dance around the island dukedom. Ulrick could smell the ocean from this book, not the smell of fish mind you, but the smell of the sea salt, the seaweed, and sand that made Ulrick think of the ocean. 

This was a particular party that Ulrick tried to piece together in his mind. There was a man with presumably violet hair dancing in garb that Ulrick would have presumed was some fancy royal warrior clothes. However, under his bright red jacket was nothing but a necklace. He had no armor and it appeared the sword he was dancing with was just for show. He had eyebrows that would have given him a severe expression except here he looks serene and calm. The character himself was fairly androgynous, save for the bare chest and broad shoulders. His smile was so full of joy and love for his passion, which made Ulrick think back to when he was tending to the sheep back at his farm. 

Behind him was a nervous wreck of a woman trying to keep up with his dance with a mandolin. She wore glasses, something the people of Jingai have invented for most of their people to see. She had blue hair that was tied in a ponytail but not as intricately done as her male counterparts. She wore the basic medical gear that Ulrick can find in hospitals in bigger capitals. She even had a messenger bag with first aid wrapped over her shoulder. She was focused on her instrument, but Ulrick can tell from the pained expression she was struggling. There was a caption in faded silver color.

  
“Dad was a good dancer, but Mommy needs to work on her mandolin skills.”   
  


Ulrick smiled softly. So these were Ortega’s parents when they were fairly young. Ulrick was initially envious. His father couldn't imagine himself being as handsome as Ortega’s let alone as dexterous. 

He turned the page. 

They were now in white attire. Wedding clothes. Ortega’s father was wearing pearls and white opals over his bodice. He almost looked like a bride, and his golden anklets and accents made Ulrick feel like he could be a princess of some exotic kingdom… if not for his bare chest and broad shoulders. 

Ulrick noticed Ortega’s father had his hand over his wife’s stomach and his head over her shoulder. Ortega’s mother, the bride in this picture, was just as beautiful in this picture. Her dress was more traditional to what Ulrick knew of brides, but the glasses, and how well-kept her hair was in this picture compared to the last one made Ulrick think this made her stand out more. Ulrick could see himself marrying Ortega in the wedding dress, a short-sleeved gown with a skirt ending at her knee. He shook his head and noticed the other people in the picture.

There was a man, much older than the couple clapping in one corner with a severe and disgruntled expression. He didn’t seem impressed in this picture and it felt even worse when he stood out in his black attire. Ulrick can see his own father relating to this man. 

Then there was a woman who looked a lot like Elyon. Clearly she wasn’t as Elyon and Ortega appeared the same age. This woman was clapping with more enthusiasm and vigor. She looked sincerely happy to be there and Ulrick pieced together that this woman was Elyon’s mother and that her mother was entirely different than the violent girl Ulrick remembered. 

There was a fifth member, but it seemed his head was faded off and Ulrick could barely get her expression due to the water damage (or he thought was water damage) obscuring her face. Ulrick couldn’t tell if she was happy for Ortega's parents or not. 

He looked down at the image as the silver lettering read something ominous. 

“The last time all five of us were happy.”

Ulrick shuddered to turn the next page. He wanted to know what happened but he thought maybe it would get too personal. Despite his better judgment, he turned. His eyes then widened.

There was a bloody scene. There was a sickly colored green and purple dragon surrounded in gold and chewing up what looked like a female warrior. Purple haze surrounded this dragon, which Ulrick couldn't imagine himself encountering a dragon like this. The woman that looked like Elyon was in the gear of a Phalanx, and she looked more like Elyon in this picture, raging on to battle this dragon. 

The solemn older gentleman in the picture with the unhappy expression before was casting a spell with a wand that looked like a paintbrush. Ulrick tried to look for Ortega’s parents until he found what looked like the two of them trying to run away.

Ortega's father was bridal carrying Ortega’s now distressed mother, who looked like she was dying in his arms, her hands over her now enlarged abdomen. Ulrick knew what this meant but the fact it was in the middle of this violent and passionate battle made Ulrick relieved that this wasn't happening to him when his parents both went into Gargamello Woods. 

He wasn’t surprised when he read the silver caption, “The day we had you.” 

Ulrick turned the next page, continuing on and noticing how Ortega has grown from an infant born from a battle-torn party to the woman Ulrick was feeling his heart race around. She was a brunette, unlike her parents. While she didn’t inherit her father's eyebrows, she was able to make more severe expressions. She was wearing a ponytail like her mother's in these pictures. 

Each caption was cute and later he noticed Elyon finally came into the picture of Ortega's life. Ulrick grinned. Oh, look how darling they look together as young and carefree girls. Though Elyon’s mother was there as well and she had more of her daughter’s sour attitude. Ulrick sighed. He didn’t want to know how that came to be. 

The last picture of a happy looking Elyon was, 

“Elyon isn’t your sister. Her Daddy is the one who drew these of us. He was in our party too.”

Then he turned to an image of an older Elyon crying. Ortega was unsurprisingly comforting her as Ortega’s parents looked away in the background. Ulrick never thought he saw the day Elyon would be crying. It had to be important on why that is. 

He read this caption. 

“Elyon’s mother tried to challenge him again. She never came back.”

Ulrick shuddered. No wonder Elyon was so headstrong and bloodthirsty. Her mother tried to avenge the death of a warrior. 

He then began turning the pages, seeing more vivid memories Ortega had with her family. Ulrick even noticed she went to school to be a worthy ninja. It looked like Ortega's parents were nervous initially but saw the passion she had for it each time. Ulrick sighed with envy. This was a strong contrast to his own family life. 

Then he saw the last page, of Ortega hugging her parents as if to bid them farewell. While their hairs did grey, there weren't any obvious wrinkles in sight. Ortega's father was just as handsome as on his first page. Ulrick can only dream of being as handsome.

This last caption read, “Have a safe journey... Mommy and Daddy will miss you!”

Ulrick’s tears ran down his face reading this. He had sudden memories of his mother before she died and how she told him that 'Mommy and Daddy will miss you!’ before they left on their first and last adventure. 

Then, he felt a pain in his heart. He looked down. There seemed to be nothing. That’s when he noticed Uriel wasn't with him.

“Uriel? Uriel!” He whimpered.

He ran out to find her in the intense heavy rain outside. He called out for her and waited for a sign that she was at least alive. 

There was a maa-ing sound back inside the inn. He turned. Nothing. He slowly moved back inside. That was where he realized Uriel was on the first floor trying to eat the leaves off of a potted plant in the lobby. Ulrick felt the pain worsen. 

Uriel looked at Ulrick before pouncing on him.

“Uriel! What are you--”

There was a problem. Uriel pulled out a bloodied but still obvious plant out of Ulrick's body from under his bandage. 

“How did that…”

“It’s Mandrake Plague. Don’t worry. Thanks to the people up North, it is curable. But if not taken care of, you’ll start turning into growth for some unwanted weeds. It’s surprising that a lamb can detect it.”

Ulrick turned around. It was Ortega. She was holding her book.

“Oh… Hey Ortega.” Ulrick murmured as he covered his wound.

“I’ll tell Amanda you’ll need the medicine for Mandrake's Plague. In the meantime, let’s help you back to bed. You have a surgery tomorrow that will help fix your ribs back into shape. Let’s hope your lamb doesn't acquire the taste for human flesh.” Ortega said as she helped Ulrick back to bed. 

Ulrick tried to fall asleep.

Uriel this time was on the floor as she rested more peacefully.

“The book in my hand? You can say it is important to me. It isn’t my Uriel, don't worry, but I wouldn't want someone to damage it.” Ortega began to speak again, alerting Ulrick she wanted to talk to him.

Ulrick looked at her with an excited but pained gleam. This was his chance to get to know her. He was so relieved to actually talk to her outside of battle.

“Your parents. What are they exactly?” Ulrick asked, trying not to stress his body.

“They were explorers of the Valhan mazes and ruins. Like in this mainland, Valhan has adventure ready for anyone to obtain, but it is so alien and surreal, people call people ready to take it on explorers. Their exploration was halted. With their leader dead, their motivation to explore further has depleted.” Ortega replied.

“Who was the man... taking the pictures?” Ulrick asked recalling the photographs. 

“Oh? You mean Elyon's father? He’s appeared in only two pictures near the beginning of this album. He's a family friend.” Ortega said though her expression seems to read that there is more to that. In fact, her tone was rather contrary, as if something went wrong between them.

“He hurt you, didn't he?” Ulrick asked now showing concern and observing her behavior.

“No… Nothing like that. He just…”

Ortega paused for a bit, trying to keep her composure. Uriel moved away from Ortega, almost in fear that she might kick her.

Ortega sighed, remaining composed.

  
“Ebonezer, Elyon’s father, tried to separate my parents. He tried to steal Dad away from us.” Ortega finally replied, albeit with obvious disgruntlement. 

Ulrick blinked in confusion initially. However, after remembering the grace and beauty her father had, he could honestly see a man trying to woo him. Though he tried not to think too hard on that subject.

  
“I’m not a homophobe, but I am most certainly against stealing another person’s loved one. Elyon was the one who told me this. She saw him try to do things with Dad... Things Dad would do with mom. To Ebonezer, Dad was his muse... his model... his plaything. That last page was the last picture he drew of us.” Ortega continued in composed anger. 

Ulrick was a little unsure of how he would feel in Ortega's situation. He could barely remember his mother, and his father wasn’t a real looker. He looked away with nothing to add to the conversation.

“He’s still hanging with us. Mom doesn’t know what Ebonezer tries to do to him. With the two of us gone, I am praying to God that the two of them are reading my messages.” Ortega said, shaking her head as if she was hoping to forget about him. 

“Were you… trying to tell… your Mom?” Ulrick asked her, now feeling the pain making him pass out.

“I wanted to address my father about it. However, the two of them read their letters together. They’re pretty cute that way. I hope when they read the letters they stay together.” Ortega replied with a soft sigh.

Ortega then noticed the now fainted Ulrick.

“...Don’t try to talk. I am sorry I made you worry about my own story. Amanda will hopefully help you recover.” Ortega murmured.

Ulrick prayed Ortega kissed him after that, and he dreamed so. However, that was as far as Ulrick got to dream that night. His pain made him dream nothing more.

When Ulrick woke up, it was a beautiful, sunny day. He looked down. He saw new bandages on his body, and his chest pain subsided. He noticed Ortega reading a letter from a green envelope with a stamp. The stamp had an image of a small curly haired terrier… nay, a poodle. Whatever the dog maybe, he didn’t pick up it was Valhan until he saw silver letters on the front of the envelope. How intricate the letters in Ortega's name looked on the back also helped Ulrick get a good glimpse of how beautiful Valhan culture must be. 

Ortega herself looked pleasant reading this letter, an expression of relief and satisfaction could be read on her face. Ulrick wondered if this was about Ebonezer going away. 

He rose up to look, his chest feeling lighter than usual. As he did, he was greeted by Ortega observing him.

“Hey. I am glad you feel better. Listen. I didn't mean to overshare. I should have let you learn about me when you recovered.” Ortega said as she looked down, feeling bad for communicating to him in his pain.

“It’s no biggie. So what happened? Did your family make up? What happened exactly?” Ulrick asked. 

Ortega looked up at him and told him gently, “I guess I shouldn't be surprised you remembered so much from two days ago. Don’t worry I helped Uriel eat her greens and stay hydrated.”

Ulrick squeaked, “I was out for two days?!”

Ortega laughed and then continued saying, “I said to don’t worry! The Guild Master said because you risked your life and managed to survive, he won’t rush your recovery. In fact, we can still adventure with four people in a group. It’s hard but we can do it. We just can't search through Gargamello Woods again. We’ll have to look elsewhere for the princess.”

“What’s the minimum amount of people that can be in an adventuring party in this Guild?” Ulrick asked concerned.

“If more than two people die in an adventure, the party must disband. The minimum needed for a Guild is five but the minimum for a party is three. If you try to solo or venture out as a couple, the Guild Master will not count it as an adventure, and he will not give the rewards to the solo artist or the couple in question. It is to prevent selfish acts.” Ortega explained, “That is why at the beginning we were assigned numbers and brought together through the random number generation. I was lucky to have Elyon in the same group as me.”

Ortega paused after that, for at least thirty seconds. She got up and left. Ulrick was worried about her. Elyon was Ortega’s closest friend. He wasn't that surprised that Ortega left after Elyon was mentioned. Ulrick really wished that he can help her out.

He looked at Uriel. She was looking up at Ulrick observing him. She moved closer to him as she maad. It was like she was trying to comfort him with soothing words. 

As the sun was setting, Ortega came back. She was wearing a blue scarf instead of a red one, though the red in her outfit went into her pants in her ninja attire. She seemed to have her cry. She came back with groceries, something Ulrick didn't think to ask her.

“I guess I should tell you what happened.” Ortega explained with a soft voice, “My parents got my letter warning them about Ebonezer. My mother was at first shocked. She asked my father to confirm this, and was even more shocked he did. They were able to talk things out. My father was scared she’d leave him if he told her this. I am glad she didn't.”

“What about Ebonezer?” Ulrick asked, now concerned.

Ortega replied in a matter of fact tone, “They left his neighborhood and moved elsewhere. They are recently looking at moving to Shamrock Hills in the mainland. My mom is expecting again and she is hoping to raise the little tyke in a quiet rural area without worrying about Ebonezer.”

Ulrick's eyes widened. 

“Shamrock Hills? That's where I am from! T-though my Dad made a bet that if I came back with 1,000,000 gold with my limbs still attached to me that we can keep the farm there. Though, I am scared I won’t make it. I want to live in Shamrock Hills for the rest of my life.” Ulrick squirmed as he uttered those words.

“That's a peculiar little challenge. Well, my parents don't want to be farmers, so chances are they won't buy your land right away. That is unless they decide to make it a little country mansion. They had an exploration party with Ebonezer that helped them explore the rest of the mazes. They even found a way to avenge Elyon's mom and the leader of the team. The two of them only made 93,600 platinum from completing the exploration though out of a huge chunk of the duke’s money. That metal is important to the Valhans but I don’t know how much that costs to the mainland. If it isn’t that much, then they most certainly would not try to think of buying a farmer's land.”

“I don't even know what platinum is.” Ulrick shook his head in worry.

“It’s Valhan currency. You can mine it in the Northernmost part of Valha but it is a long climb. My parents discovered more metals and gems in the process. They had such a big adventure finding resources to export to the mainland but I feel Ebonezer took a lot more money and cheated the two of them out of a deal. Especially since the main total for all of them was 1,000,000 platinum. Only getting a mere fraction feels bad enough.” 

Isami suddenly came into the picture as she was inching more closely, as if to eavesdrop on the two. It seemed she was interested in what Ortega was saying.

“Did I hear that right? 93,600 platinum? That’s white gold… No. It is harder and more prettier than that. That is 93,600,000 in Jingai gold. That is more than enough to share.” Ulrick can hear Isami murmur this but he looked towards Ortega to see if she can hear it too.

“I hope I can make more in the mainland. That way I can help pay for a more luxurious life for them.” Ortega finished telling them.

Ulrick tried to pretend what Isami said didn't get mentioned in whispers at all. He shook the thought of it off.

“I went to the cemetery to tell Elyon about everything. We were going to tell everyone once we finished our first adventure. Since she died though, I decided to tell mother anyway. I didn't want my father to suffer in silence.” 

  
Ulrick grinned. Maybe Elyon’s violence was based on her feelings towards her father. Either way, maybe right now Ortega is trying to give Elyon her peace.

Though, first thing is first…

He went to confront Isami about what she murmured. Isami noticed Ulrick approach her and she paused. She didn’t know what he was thinking.

“Listen, if what you said is true, do not tell Ortega or Adam about this,” Ulrick said in a hushed tone.

Isami nodded, “I just know platinum is significantly more valuable than gold. If Valhans really live on platinum, I dread on what they consider peasants.”

Ulrick sighed. First, he has to adventure away from his farm in Shamrock Hills and now he has to keep a secret as to not disappoint Ortega with a greedy princess. Where has he gone wrong in life?

To Be Continued...


	2. Chapter 2

A tawny girl with blonde locks tied into twintails was running clad in gauntlets and leg armor as well as a red bikini. She was panting, meaning she was running for a while. She kept looking back before tripping over a root from the ground.

She got up, her well-endowed bosom scraped on the ground. She began to cry. She looked back. A dark figure was approaching her. It was big, purple, and had big teeth. She looked up at the monster and before she can scream she saw a shuriken pierce through its thick hide. 

It roared. It was a giant lizard with two tails. The girl looked for the source, and there was Ortega in her new red pants and her blue scarf. The girl almost swooned at the sight of her. But she saw Ortega wasn't alone. 

“Here! Have some greens!” Ulrick roared as he threw some seeds at the lizard. As Adam snapped his fingers, the lizard watched as the seeds started to grow on his scales, taking root under his flesh. The lizard roared. Adam murmured a spell and sent a fireball on him, cooking the lizard in return. 

“Here. Let's help you up, Miss…” Ortega said as she raised her hand to help the blonde-haired girl get up. Isami was readying some ailment medicine for her scraped parts of her body.

“Golly! Thanks a bunch!” The girl jumped up to hug Ortega. Ulrick turned as Adam was starting to figure out a means to carry the lizard in his mind. He turned back to see her. His eyes widened by her sudden affections.

“You are welcome, Miss…” Ortega began to speak.

“Oh! I am Snowbelle. I just am so relieved to have escaped! But now I have to find my Master. He was fighting a couple more of those… beasties.” The girl replied as she pointed at the corpse. 

Isami picked up the colossal creature with only one hand, surprising Adam. 

“Let's eat.” Isami said nonchalantly, “I could kill for some fried lizard meat.” 

“Want to see where he is?” Ulrick asked now concerned for the girl. 

“Well, we’ll have to go back to where I last saw him,” Snowbelle replied looking anxious. She pointed at the path she was running on and pointed further and further out. 

“You heard the girl. Let's go find him using that path.” Ortega replied. 

As they were walking through the path, it took barely thirty whole minutes until they heard the hissing sound of more of the hideous creatures that Snowbelle was being chased by. Snowbelle began hiding behind Ortega. Ortega nodded and began to guard her. 

Ulrick held his pitchfork tightly. It took some time but eventually, the hissing subsided. Uriel began to weep beside him.

Adam sighed with relief, though Isami, still holding the large corpse with one hand, groaned, as her stomach did. 

As Adam took a step backward, he felt something sharp crack loudly. He looked down. It was a white long, very frail rod, unfit for a more experienced explorer, who would have used a much thicker rod for battles against monsters. 

“Ah! Master’s Staff!” Snowbelle squeaked as she picked it up. 

Isami turned only to slip on something. It was a cloth, originally a violet color but was tainted with blood, making it tint an ugly brown instead. 

“Ah!”

Snowbelle approached the cloth as she then cracked one more item. 

She looked down. It was freshly pulled off of the tendons and ligaments, so it was still red from the blood inside of the muscles connected to it. The bone itself looked like it couldn't have supported those muscles as they were thin and slightly damaged already. 

She began to weep, which then turned into extreme bawling. Ulrick felt terrible as he couldn't help her. This was just as bad as Elyon's loss. He didn't really know how to relate to losing one’s teacher. 

The crying, however, returned the hissing noises. Ulrick looked around. 

“We got to go! One twin-tailed butcher was easy to cook but a whole pack of them is just going to make us the meal!” Ulrick shrieked as he grabbed both the sobbing Snowbelle and Uriel. 

Ortega quickly followed. Adam and Isami looked at each other as they then followed after them. The whole time, Snowbelle kept weeping and the lizards were following after them as they began to snarl so angrily. It didn't take long for the hissing to stop as they made it back to town with the more experienced explorers and royal guard outnumbering the beasts. 

_-_-_-_-_-_-_

In the bar, Snowbelle was understandably quiet. She could only drink ale served at the table and take quick glances at Ulrick and the others. 

“Shit. What are we going to do?” Isami asked as she looked towards Ortega. 

“We can take her in, but she doesn't sound like she would adventure quite yet,” Ortega replied as she sipped her beer. 

“We could buy her new clothes. A red bikini is really not fit for adventuring.” Ulrick mentioned. 

He looked at Snowbelle again. The bikini did flatter her hourglass figure. Though seeing it covered in dirt and blood made Ulrick feel sorrier for her. 

“Ummm… Actually… I don't mind… Adventuring with you guys. I want to someday be strong so one day, I can take down a butcher like the ones that ate Master.”

The group looked at Snowbelle who finally spoke. 

“Very well, then.” Ortega began to talk back, “We should introduce ourselves properly since you’ll have to interact with us more. We won't adventure today as we still need to find clues on the missing princess.”

Snowbelle nodded, “T-that’s understandable! We can go shopping! And then after that, we can shower up and rest! W-what is your name?”

“I am Ortega. The one with red hair is Isami, her boyfriend is Ada---”

“He’s not my boyfriend!” Isami snapped. 

“In that case, Ms. Snowbelle? I wouldn't mind if I was your new Master.” Adam purred. 

“How about you don't?” Isami hissed angrily. 

“I-I’m Ulrick. Nice to meet you!” Ulrick smiled. 

“You see… I wanted to join a Guild so I can prove to Daddy I can be a strong woman. He is treating me like a child still and it always hurts my feelings. I have only known Master for two weeks and in those two weeks, he was trying to get more people to join his Guild. They were mostly women in prettier clothes than me… and yet he told me I shouldn't wear too much when fighting because I already have a sword and shield, and that the armor wouldn't show off my figure. I was so confused by that because Daddy had a lot of strong beautiful warriors at home and they still wore full armor looking even more strong and beautiful.”

Snowbelle became chatty. She must have needed to vent. From what Ulrick could gather though, Snowbelle’s old 'Master’ was too picky of a self-proclaimed Guild leader and he really didn't sound like anyone from the official Guilds in the tavern. The more he heard about Snowbelle's relationship with her 'Master’ the more Ulrick perceived that he deserved to be torn to shreds by the butchers, especially for how he treated Snowbelle so carelessly. 

“...And he wouldn't let me send any letters to Daddy about where I was going. I was hoping to tell him I joined a Guild but Master said…” Snowbelle began sobbing again. 

“Snowbelle. It is okay. You can send a letter to your father about joining this Guild.” Ortega said as she laid a hand on Snowbelle's. 

Snowbelle blushed and looked flustered at Ortega.

“Ms. Ortega? Are you sure? I mean, wouldn't you be waiting until we were famous?” Snowbelle asked as she occasionally glanced away from her. 

“We are not going down in history as some big band of heroes. Besides, your father is probably worried about you. He needs to know where you’ve been.” Ortega said, “You can borrow my stationary set if you need to. I write to my parents every day.”

Snowbelle stopped sniffling and looked at Ortega with her beautiful brown eyes. 

“M-Ms. Ortega?”

“Yes, Snowbelle?”

“W-Will you be my Mistress? Can we share a bed like I used to with Master? I mean… You can touch me wherever you like, unlike Master. I had to tell him that Daddy would be mad if a man touched me. But you're a girl… So we can even snuggle if you want.” Snowbelle said as she inched closer to Ortega. 

Ulrick knew what was going on. Snowbelle was romantically attracted to Ortega. She had an unsavory relationship with her Master that corrupted her view on how romantic relationships in Guilds worked. 

Adam initially was heartbroken but then Isami kicked him for staring. 

“Don't call me Mistress…” Ortega groaned, “I think that would be too creepy. But we have a bed already in the girl's bedroom. You don't have to share a bed with me.”

Snowbelle's eyes lightened up more, “You mean I get to have my own bed?”

“Of course,” Ortega said. 

“Oh, Ortega! I think I am in love with this Guild already! And the best part? You're my new favorite Mistress!” Snowbelle's mood was lifted from being around Ortega. 

Ulrick felt jealousy, but why? Unlike Olivia and Oscardi, Ortega is not his and they aren't even romantically involved. Ulrick liked Snowbelle as well. Then again, Ebonezer initially liked Olivia as a friend until Oscardi became romantically attached to her. Ulrick kept shaking his head. He can't turn into Ebonezer and try to separate himself Snowbelle from Ortega because Ortega may not see him that way. 

“Maaaa.”

Snowbelle looked down and saw Uriel headbutting her. 

“A lamb? How cute!”

Uriel was picked up by Snowbelle as Snowbelle twirled around with her being held like a baby. Uriel began nibbling her hair, Snowbelle giggling at the prospect until Uriel tugged on her hair. 

“Ouchies!”

“Uriel! Stop!”

Ulrick pulled Uriel away from Snowbelle as Snowbelle snuggled up closer to Ortega. Uriel maad as Ulrick figured Uriel didn't like Snowbelle getting close with Ortega either. 

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

Ulrick sighed. He looked out the window to his bedroom. Uriel rested soundly as he noticed someone pattering at his door. 

He opened it to see Isami again. 

“Listen, Ortega is loaded and she doesn't know it. If she dies, then we won't be able to get it. If Snowbelle, however, gets all chummy with Ortega, Ortega might be picking favorites and we’d both stay broke because of it.”

“What's your point?”, Ulrick groaned as he closed the door on her.

“The point is, let's figure out a way to get rid of that lovesick puppy! She's making Adam's disgusting flirtations towards the opposite sex have a run for their money. Getting rid of her will ensure one of us will get a piece of her platinum!”

“Listen. I know you're from a kingdom struggling financially, but I don't want to stoop to lows this quickly. Besides, we just need a day to see how it goes? Maybe Snowbelle will find interest in someone else.” Ulrick said. 

“What's with that passiveness? I know you are trying to avoid seeing Ortega for her money because you might actually like Ortega.”

Ulrick paused. 

“C’mon! You know I am right?”

“Go. Away.”

Ulrick’s voice boomed. It kept Isami away quickly. Ulrick sighed as he looked out the window again. The night sky was big. He took a deep breath before staring up at it. Another knock happened. 

He opened the door to see Adam this time. 

“Hey, Ulrick. The girls are going to take a bath. Mind if we keep watch?” Adam said using finger guns to point towards the direction of the bathhouse. 

“Keep watch of what?... Don't tell me you are asking me to peep on them!” 

“I saw how curious you were of Ortega. Yes, Ms. Snowbelle's figure is beautiful, but you seem more fascinated with Ortega. I can see why. You want to see how she looks without her kunoichi gear?” 

“Knock it off!” Ulrick snapped as he slammed the door on Adam. 

He was in love. And people were picking up on it. 

“Maaaa.”

“Not you too, Uriel.” Ulrick sighed as he tried to resume his stargazing. 

He closed his eyes to a fond memory in his past. 

_-_-_-_-_

_ “Mama! Mama! Yadia is having puppies!”  _

_ Ulrick pointed to the border collie who suddenly collapsed on the ground surrounded by curious sheep. His mother pushed her aside and ran. _

_ “No… No no no!!!”  _

_ “But Mama, isn't this a good thing? Yadia is going to be a mommy too!” _

_ The yelps and yips of puppies as they squeezed out of the collie’s womb were so subtle because of the sheep baaing and maaing around them.  _

_ “Not in this weather… I was hoping she’d hold them still when it got warmer. If we don't take them someplace warm, Yadia’s puppies will di---” _

_ The sheep that were nursing their own lambs surrounded the puppies without damaging them. Yadia nuzzled each sheep gently.  _

_ “What are they doing?”  _

_ “Yadia is thanking them, Mama. The sheep are warm, right?” _

_ Ulrick's mother sighed with worry.  _

_ “Now I am scared of what is to come for them once we lose these fields. The sheep here are good for cloth, but more and more, the cotton fields that are importing warmer wear may replace them. We need to make sure that these sheep and these dogs still have a place, Ulrick. Now, your father and I have disagreed on this farm. But I want you to take care of it. You love this place more than he does. He inherited it from his father before him, yet he doesn't share the joy you have. Will you find a way to make sure these animals have these fields to live in for the rest of their lives?” _

_-_-_-_-_

Getting the money by cutting corners and trying to win Ortega's favor is an easy way out but getting to love Ortega and showing her why he loves being a farmer so much… Having that same excitement of new life on his farm and building from that life something productive is something he has dreamed more and more about all of his life. 

Uriel was a new life from Shamrock Hills. He had to take care of Uriel’s ancestors in order to have her in his life. He does not want to have her not return to her peaceful life with her mother. 

Before he can pet Uriel, he heard a scream. 

As he opened the door to his room, he saw Adam get tossed across the hallway with an angry Isami being the one who threw him. 

“Get a life, clown!” Isami roared before returning into the hot springs. 

Ulrick sighed. He really didn't know what to do…

_-_-_-_-_-_

The next morning, Ulrick woke up to countless armored soldiers patrolling the Inn, scanning each hotel room carefully. A couple of those soldiers were talking to Amanda who nodded nervously and began to speak frantically. 

'Tax Day must be very taxing for Amanda…’ Ulrick thought at first. He could flashback to his father begrudgingly giving gold to the foot soldiers of this kingdom. But then he observed the soldiers more carefully. For starters, the armor was strongly conservative, especially for the weather. Another important factor was the fact they didn't seem to be upset or aggressive with Amanda, in fact being just as desperate as she is. There was no monetary exchange, just an exchange of apologies. 

Amanda approached Ulrick as the foot soldiers left. 

“Those were the Knights of Flores. They heard rumors the princess was in this very town. They observed the gossip more carefully and they said the last time they saw her, she was right here. But that can't be right. Then again…”

Ulrick stopped to think as she kept talking. Snowbelle was eager to write to her father again and was also insistent on adventuring despite his wishes. Could it be that Snowbelle is the princess? In that case…

“Snowbelle is well fed for an adventurer, let alone one that didn't have a lot of successful missions. I didn't think that she would be the one, but she does share a striking resemblance to the King of Flores himself.” Amanda observed as she heard Snowbelle from one of the rooms over. 

Ulrick ran in as he saw Ortega just about to leave and Snowbelle swooning on her very own bed. 

“Snowbelle?”

Snowbelle turned to see Ulrick. 

“Is it true? Are you the princess?”

Snowbelle gave a long pause before answering. She nodded, almost in complete shame. She looked at Ulrick with sad brown eyes. 

“But I don't want to go back to the castle. I'll be babied again and Daddy would just scold me. I want to stay in the village and adventure with you guys. You already proved to me you are nothing like my old Master.” Snowbelle whined as she wrapped herself in blankets as if to conceal herself. 

“Well when we next meet him, you'll have nothing to worry about. Ortega and I can convince him if you really want.” Ulrick said assuringly. 

“I hope you're right…” Snowbelle sniffled. 

Ulrick rested his hand over her shoulder. She looked back at him with a cautious grimace. 

_-_-_

-_-_-

As they were about to walk outside of town towards the town road...

“Halt!”

Everyone turned around. Snowbelle's eyes widened. 

Had Ulrick not have known any better, he would have presumed that this man was Snowbelle's older twin brother. However he recognized the regal red attire from anywhere, and he also could tell a prince wouldn't have so many men at his disposal looking around the village. He eyeballed for wrinkles and saw none. This man was quite androgynous, much like Ortega's father. Is it possible that Snowbelle's older brother had mo--

“D-Daddy?!” Snowbelle gasped.

“Snowbelle! Oh, thank goodness you're safe!" The King of Flores replied as he embraced his daughter in a tight hug. Snowbelle hugged back excitedly at first but then the King began to observe the rest of her party. He didn't seem approving at first until Ortega approached them. 

“Snowbelle’s original had recently been deceased in the swamps. We rescued her and now she is a part of our Guild.” Ortega replied.

“Daddy~!!” Snowbelle squealed almost in a begging tone, "I want to stay here and adventure with Ms. Ortega! She is an amazing kunoichi!" 

Ulrick looked away. He didn't feel too peachy keen on having Snowbelle admire and praise Ortega in front of her father even if it was clear she was trying to convince him that the party was harmless. 

“Thank you for rescuing my little angel. What are your names so I can inform her mother?” The man asked.

“Daddy, this is Ms. Ortega. She is really cool and stuff and I want to train with her to become stronger!” Snowbelle began introducing everyone, starting with Ortega.

Of course, it was Ortega that was first. It seemed Snowbelle was charmed by Ortega, something Ortega did not really object in the slightest. He felt pained but he needed to shirk that jealousy off if it meant protecting Snowbelle. 

“And this here is Ulrick. He’s really nice too, but he’s really timid.” Snowbelle introduced Ulrick next, which made Ulrick’s pale skin pink.

He actually was surprised he was introduced second at first, but this was possibly due to the fact he helped Snowbelle find the right words to communicate to her Father. That, and he was happy to think of Oscardi when her Father's serene smile greeted Ulrick as he gave him a gentle handshake. 

"And this is my Master and his girlfriend!" Snowbelle casually said introducing Adam and Isami. Isami and Snowbelle's father both gave Adam a death glare. 

“...It was a joke, sir...” Adam tried to reason with Snowbelle’s father, only for his head to be slammed up against a wall by Isami of all people. Snowbelle's father made no such physical contact but the fact he approached Adam's injured state made Ulrick begin to shiver and flinch preemptively. 

“Never again,” was what Snowbelle’s father hissed.

Snowbelle and the rest of the team were completely worried about Adam’s health. But it was a given that Isami loathed being associated romantically with Adam unfortunately. 

Before Ulrick knew it, he turned to see Ebonezer’s face in the distance. At least, he thought it was him. Maybe it was just a coincidence. This coincidence though was discomforting Ulrick enough that he had to talk to Ortega about him again. The question, of course, was when. 

"Daddy, Ms. Ortega is really nice! She made sure Mr. Adam never laid a hand on me! Can I at least stay with her? Please?" Snowbelle was begging and pleading with her Father. He groaned begrudgingly.

"Fine. But know I am doing this because I trust you with this Ms. Ortega woman! If you leave this party, you may NEVER adventure again!" Her father said as he lectured his daughter. 

Ulrick can feel his stomach churn as the King of Flores who made it a mission to find and send his daughter back is leaving her with the woman she loves. Oddly poetic but he knew it was going to be like this. Ulrick, however, opened his mouth.

"You should join us, my liege!" 

The King looked at Ulrick wide-eyed. 

"What do you mean?" The King asked a bit baffled. 

"Well, for starters, you can keep a closer eye on your daughter and the two of you can bond helping us fight the monsters of the many forests and caves that wou-" 

"I know you meant well, Ulrick," the King said concerned as he felt himself turn solemn with conflict, "but my country needs me more than you could possibly imagine. I want to be there and protect her but…"

"Daddy…" Snowbelle said as she was quick to share her empathy with her father. Isami initially grinned because of her money-obsessed ways but glared darts when she realized it would mean there would be two rich girls in the party unaware of their financial positions in life and chances are Ulrick wasn't going to take any advantage of that. 

"Snowbelle. Be good," the King said as he then gave her a beautiful shield before parting ways. 

Ulrick then returned his thoughts of the visions of Ebonezer he saw. He gulped. He didn't know if he wanted to tell Ortega about it or not. He felt himself grow just as conflicted as the King did. 

As the King parted ways from the party riding a white steed with a buttercup yellow mane, Snowbelle became the third person filled with emotional turmoil and conflict. 

_-_-_-_

-_-_-_-

“Ms. Ortega! Mr. Ulrick! Let’s go exploring!” Snowbelle giggled. Her mood has recovered since the day she met with her father, the King of Flores. 

This was the first time Snowbelle addressed Ulrick for a while. That made Ulrick’s eyes widen with interest. His mind was so focused on Ebonezer that maybe he has forgotten to be honest. 

“What about Adam and Isami?” Ulrick asked, as he then recognized the rest of the party was being ignored by her. 

“Oh! Well, they can come along as well, but... You know... I think they are occupied with other things.” Snowbelle retorted looking towards the two fighting as always. Though it seemed to have escalated due to what happened in front of the King. 

“You pervo! Why do I have to be stuck with a weirdo like you?!” Isami hissed at Adam.

“B-but...”

“Leave already! I mean, God Damn...” Isami said as she spat on the ground.

Adam was about to go into tears.

“Go drown somewhere you freak!”

He ran.

“...Isami, that wasn’t very nice.” Snowbelle said in a reprimanding tone to Isami.

“It was all because I saved his ugly hide when we were kids!” Isami said as she looked into her ale. 

“You saved him?” Ulrick blinked.

“Yeah. Back in our hometown, purple was an ugly color,” Isami looked down coldly, a little serious.

Snowbelle and Ortega leaned in closely to Isami.

“He was only raised by his mother, who was a prostitute. She was the only one that actually gave a shit about him. He had many siblings, but they treat him the same way the other kids in town did. It was all because his hair was a shade of purple. His eyes were purple." Isami murmured. 

Ulrick can imagine Adam as a child having his long flowing locks of straight lilac-colored hair pulled by the other kids as he was screaming for help. At the same time, this was the first time that he saw this side of the money-hungry princess who didn't seem to show much concern for others outside of a financial game. 

“Then one day, his older brother, and a bunch of other bullies after burning the left half of his face were about to drown him in the water. It was the day of his mother’s funeral, and she no longer could protect him. They were going to kill the shame of the family next.” Isami said growing grim with disgust. 

Ulrick wondered why Adam had that huge sidebang, so his burnt face was from as a child? 

“My parents requested I save him. We were the town’s nobles, but we couldn’t be selfish, or else the other kingdoms wouldn’t help us with the town anymore and consider us savages.” Isami said, biting her lips unaware of the words she just had said. 

So Isami's parents were not as obsessed with money. A bit off, but he understood where her family came from. Helping others was an important means to build up allies for a nation. 

“Poor Mr. Adam!” Snowbelle began sniveling.

“You know, at first I thought I did it because he was another scared lonely kid like me. But after I finally met him, he turned out to be a real creep. He couldn’t stop following me and shit. He started saying lovey-dovey bullshit like he’s nothing without me and whatnot. I only did it so we can save the town, you know? If not for that, I would have let him drown...” Isami told Snowbelle as if she was wronged by Adam's existence. 

Ortega ran to slap her. Snowbelle covered her mouth as if something she should have never said slipped out. She was still in tears, but now she was in shock as well that Ortega would have raised a hand to one of her comrades. 

“First of all, how dare you?! At first, I thought I was going to sympathize with you about Adam. He’s a troublemaker, and it seems he is a womanizer, but now I know why he’s like this. The only people to help him were women. And you, my friend, haven’t recognized that!" Ortega snapped.

Ulrick never saw Ortega so angry before. Possibly because Ortega was proven by Isami that she truly had no empathy for others. 

“Yes, he’s gotten terrible influences on how to get more women to like him, but you are no better than a termite. Why the Hell does he care about you when you have second thoughts on saving a human life?! We saved Ulrick together. You are saying you won’t do the same for another member of our team?!” Ortega roared, as tears ran down her cheek.

“Ms. Ortega...” Snowbelle could only muster out of her mouth.

“We’re going to get Adam. I fear no thanks to you, he’s probably in a lot of trouble, now...” Ortega glared at Isami.

Ortega began walking away, with Ulrick only watch and Snowbelle following Ortega.

Isami looked down, finally feeling the cheek Ortega slapped.

“...I guess he’s right. He could have done worse things to me...” Isami coughed.

Ulrick blinked for a minute, wondering what Isami meant. Soon, Isami began to snivel just like Snowbelle. 

“My parents used to berate me. They ask me to do tasks that they were too lazy to do. I would sometimes go into the slums of town only to come back the next morning after being forced to sleep with a bunch of sleazy old men. When I rescued Adam, I felt like I was ungrateful. He never asked for anything back except for me to be with him. And I do. Then he started doing all this romantic womanizer crap. It started to piss me off. So I started to have my rage control me. I started taking out my pain and suffering on Adam. I’m surprised he even stayed with me. But now he’s gone and all because I told him to drown and called him a freak.”

Ulrick looked away.

“I don’t mean to tell you my story; The reason I decided to finally go exploring the labyrinth is that my parents finally decided to do something for once in their little hosh-posh, hoity-toity lives. And they left my younger brother when he was ill. The servants are caring for him, but Adam keeps misunderstanding me and it really irritates me.”

Ulrick glared at Isami saying, “You still will seem apathetic to Ortega if you don’t help her find Adam. He’s your friend right?”

Isami nodded.

“Let’s go then! Adam could be in danger!” Ulrick squeaked.

He grabbed Isami’s hand, as Isami looked down disgusted.

_-_-_-_

-_-_-_-

Adam was looking down at a beautiful lake in one of the more peaceful and serene of forests. The deer there almost ignored him, as he was looking down as a husk of his former self. He wanted to say something but to not much avail. 

Little did he realize however that he was being watched. 

"Alright, you know what to do, correct?" An elderly man whispered into the ear of a small little girl. 

"Yes!"

"Good. Drug him and strip him clean. The others will appreciate his purple hair and fair skin. The scars will sate the appetites of sadists in our secret ring. If you fail to capture him, you won't get dinner," the elderly man continued in a still hushed tone. 

"I got it!" The little girl said nodding. 

It took a bit for her to put on the tea green makeup in her handbag, the darker green wig, and the flowery dress she had intricately made for herself. Here, she became the Alraune, the Queen of this forest's infamous fairies. She then began chanting a spell that made the flowery dress come alive. The vines that were once brown and dead on her dress were now alive, green and moving to the will of the girl. Soon she approached slowly to Adam from the bushes. 

"Hey there, Mister? Why are you crying?" She asked as she tapped him on the shoulder with one of the vines. 

"Oh! Well hello there!" Adam responded. He looked the small girl he perceived to be a fairy down. He seemed disappointed. The girl wasn't of the age where he can just woo her, so he didn't seem threatened by her. He then thought back to Isami and how she treated him.

"You see, it's an adult thing. A little girl like you wouldn't concern yourself with a guy like me. However, I do have to say that if you're much older, you could solve my little problem at an instant," he replied as he brushed his hair back for a bit. The little girl looked away as she didn’t like what she saw. 

"Do you still want to talk about it?" she asked as she then revealed a bottle for him to drink. 

"Huh. Alright. Say, I didn't think girls your age drink," he said, observing the drink to be hard in some capacity. 

"This isn't no ordinary drink, sir. This is absinthe that we in our little glen produce! All your fears will go away shortly once you take a sip!" the girl replied. 

"How old are you again? You're not quite my type but you are kind of cute how persistent you are," Adam chuckled. His mood seemed to have lifted though he had time to hesitate on the drink for a bit, the strength hitting him enough where he can already feel tipsy. 

"I'm 801!" the little girl lied. She started to panic as she realized that Adam was as intelligent as he was perverted. 

"801, eh? You don't look the part. Then again, that must be a good thing," Adam chuckled as he finally began to sip. He coughed after the first sip. 

“Mmm-hmm! The absinthe was my creation!” the girl lied again, sighing with relief that Adam was giving her drink at least a chance. 

“Alright… I might grow to like you,” Adam laughed.

He then felt a vine already removing his dark purple colored coat. 

“Wa-wait! Hold on, little lady! I think it’s a little soon to start undressing me, isn’t it?” Adam said as he tried to get his cloak back on. 

The little girl giggled, “Aren’t you a little hot, though?” 

Before long, Adam felt his head throb as more of the vines began to entangle him.

“How about we play together? You’re so sad. I can cheer you up, right, Mister?” the girl giggled as she used one of her vines to pull Adam towards him.

Adam squirmed scared. He was just a sorcerer. He threw his prepared Ice Star at her, but it really didn’t do much to her. Not at all.

“Shit...” Adam coughed.

He was then gagged as another vine began to grope him, tearing his sorcerer gear apart. Adam feared he was about to be powerless, as he would have been deflowered by the infamous Alraune. 

“The absinthe you were drinking should begin to kick in shortly. Don’t worry! I’m just cleaning you up for my friend! He really wanted to deflower you first!” the little girl assured him in a cackle. 

Adam squirmed at first but then he felt his body begin to shut down, as the drug within the potent drink was lulling him into a slumbering state. He can feel himself scream ‘No! Now’s not the time to sleep!’

Soon, he heard a familiar voice call out to him.

“ADAM!!”

A kunai stabbed the girl in the back as she cried out in pain.

“Ortega... Snowbelle... Run…” was all Adam could say before he finally fell asleep and a vine entered his mouth. 

“He’s MINE now...” the girl hissed.

Ortega threw another kunai. The girl then threw a yellow powder to paralyze her.

“My turn!” Snowbelle roared as she took her hammer to slam the girl to the ground. She was pushed to the side, as her dark green wig fell off of the girl.

“Ortega...” Snowbelle said, pointing at the wig. 

“...Wait a minute. So you’re a…”

“Oh no! What will Mr. Ebonezer say if he found out you of all people interfered? Aww no! No no no no no!” the girl screamed at herself, revealing orange-colored hair similar to Elyon’s. 

Ortega’s eyes widened as she looked down at the sleeping, almost naked Adam being dropped down by the vines as they searched for the dark green wig. 

“Mr. Ebonezer?!” Ortega began to panic as she picked the girl up, and began panicking as she tried to shake her for answers.

“Ortega? What’s going on?!” Snowbelle asked as she was attempting to stop her.

“WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THIS MR. EBONEZER?!” Ortega hissed.

The little girl flinched in pain as Ortega clenched her arms tightly. 

“He… He found me for my magic. My parents died in our previous home in the forest, and he took me in and found a new purpose for my skills,” she sniveled as her tea-green makeup began to wear off due to her tears.

“And what was that purpose?” Ortega asked with a hiss in her voice.

“We find boys by their lonesome… We strip them naked… and we take them to his mansion, where a lot more older men let them bounce on their laps,” the little girl replied.

“So he’s…” Ortega began to speak but decided against it as she clenched her fists tightly.

“Ortega? What does this all mean?” Snowbelle asked.

Ortega looked at Snowbelle and her anger seemed to have subdued for a bit, as Snowbelle’s concerned expression made Ortega snap back to the now of things. She then kissed Snowbelle and then afterward said, “It shouldn’t be anything you have to concern yourself with, my love.”

Ulrick and Isami managed to reach the rest of the group and Ulrick’s eyes widened with the realization of what just happened. 

Snowbelle’s face went from a light tan color to a feverish pink from her blushing as the little girl from earlier attempted to scurry away with the unconscious Adam. However, it was Isami this time who stopped her.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Isami asked as her eyes looked down at the naked Adam. The little girl looked up almost in awe of the red-haired princess glaring down at her.

Ulrick seemed to have zoned out from the rest of this encounter as all he could think about was Ortega kissing Snowbelle and telling her she loved her. What did happen outside of him thinking about the two girls kissing was the fact that Isami grew just as angry as Ortega did when she heard Ebonezer’s name when she asked the girl again about why Adam was stripped down to his underwear, leading to the girl crying and Isami screaming as she tried to wake Adam up. 

It took when Ortega approached Ulrick that he snapped out of his odd state of mind.

“Uh… Oh yeah! We came as fast as we did! Did we save him in time?” Ulrick asked as if he almost forgot about Adam being asked to drown himself by Isami.

“He’s still in bed, unfortunately,” Ortega said shaking her head, “but I just needed to tell you from now on, we can no longer split like we just did. It’s not just deadly but it means we might stumble upon Ebonezer and the girl he probably orphaned and took in as a henchman.”

“Isami came back for Adam. She’s not entirely selfish!” Ulrick said assuring Ortega.

Ortega made no further comment. It wasn’t like he was accusing Ulrick of lying with this silence but Ulrick knew just from her frown alone that she didn’t believe him. 

"Gee. She sure is taking a long time for her to tuck Adam in bed until he recovers," Snowbelle said observing upstairs. 

Ortega's eyes widened as she ran up the stairs in the Inn. 

Uriel bleated as Ulrick knew right away what this must mean: A fight between the girls. 

"Snowbelle, could you be a dear and keep an eye on Uriel really quickly?" Ulrick asked. 

"Ummm… Sure?" Snowbelle replied slightly puzzled. 

He ran up the stairs and saw that Ortega paused as Isami began crying over Adam's comatose body. Ortega seemed to have kept quiet for a bit. 

"Do you now understand your mistake?" Ortega asked as she crossed her arms. 

"Adam was going to suffer a fate I once faced. The thought of that for some reason made me want to kill that little brat," Isami said as her face was hot from tears and rage. 

"Ulrick seems to know more about you than he led on. Tell me, what was that fate you once faced?" Ortega asked. 

Isami gulped as she elaborated to Ortega further about the events of her childhood and how her family was actually rather bad with money and sometimes Isami would be forced into sex work in order to make ends meet. Ulrick could hear his father's voice echo that if he were a girl he would have sold him as a prostitute into the street instead of forcing him into the role of an adventurer. He then recognized right then and there that Isami was panicking for Adam because she didn't want Adam to suffer as she did without any financial incentive. 

"Adam wasn't going to be paid to be a goddamn fuck doll for these creeps. If it were up to me, I would have charged almost a whole fortune before I let anyone lay a finger on him. These people that were abducting him naked like this… They're the scum of the Earth," Isami hissed. 

"Then we agree for once about something," Ortega laughed. 

"H-huh?" Isami asked. 

"That man she mentioned. Ebonezer. He's Elyon's father, but my judgement for him is no different than yours. We can work together to prevent him from hurting any more men!" Ortega explained. 

Isami remembered that name… Ebonezer. She was baffled. Ebonezer was already loaded with money. Why oh why is he now starting a sex ring where people pay HIM to sleep with men HE abducted? Isami looked down back at Adam who turned in his sleep. 

Isami nodded, "Very well. Let's make our first Guild Mission to find and fight this creep!" 

Ulrick blinked. He knew right away that Isami probably is no longer interested in Ortega for just her money now. He was relieved the two girls would be friends. But now he has to explain to Snowbelle what is going on. 

_-_-_

-_-_-

Adam sighed as he looked longingly at his cup of coffee the first morning he finally was awake. He didn't seem too fond of a woman's company for once, which made sense as the last thing he remembered was being stripped by a little girl who was saying something about to be molested by someone else. He could have run back to the forest but he begrudgingly stayed at Isami's request, despite everything. 

Isami approached him for once. She tried to lay a hand on him as he shrugged it off. 

“Hey. I’m sorry about earlier...” Isami said, almost feeling the way he didn't want her to touch him like a dagger to her heart. 

Adam looked towards Isami, then away.

“That’s all. Aren’t you going to forgive me?” Isami asked, now looking worried.

Adam shook his head. He then continued to sip his coffee. 

“I see...” Isami looked away, “then I’m sorry for all the other times I rejected your attention. I should have known that you... were the first to genuinely care for me.”

Adam finally looked back.

“Can you... Show me your scars?” Isami asked, changing the topic. 

Adam blinked for a bit.

Then, with some hesitation, he removed his sidebang, as a cascade of red and purple was engulfing where his forehead, left eye and left cheek should have been. Most people would look at it and feel some disgust. Not Isami however, who almost choked in tears seeing it. 

Isami kissed that part of his face, as Adam gasped.

“Now don’t think because I did this I’m going to marry you or anything. Just realize that I want to help you get that part of your face healed.” Isami frowned.

Adam hugged Isami, “Ma... cherie...”

"What the fuck did I just say?" Isami hissed as she kissed him again. 

"And yet he still loves her," Ortega said rolling her eyes. 

"At least they can work with us again," Ulrick said. 

He then remembered clearly what they've learned from rescuing Adam and Ulrick turned to Ortega. 

"Actually…" Ulrick began to speak, "I thought saw him the other day."

“You thought you saw him?” Ortega asked, now looking worried.

Ulrick nodded.

“It could have been just my imagination though, but as of right now, you should see if your parents sent any letters to you,” Ulrick replied.

Ortega shook her head, “I haven’t gotten any letters for a while. Especially on Ebonezer. I’m worried something is up.”

“Who’s Ebonezer?” Snowbelle asked, overhearing their conversation.

Ortega looked towards Snowbelle. She sighed.

She rose to pet Snowbelle on the head, “It’s nothing to worry about, love; He was a family friend.”

Ulrick noticed Ortega made that face that contradicted what she said. That’s when he realized the ‘love’ part of her statement. Does Ortega openly accept Snowbelle’s feelings? And is she just saying that to protect Snowbelle? And if that’s the case, does that mean Ulrick isn’t as important to Ortega as Snowbelle is? In that case, why is that?!

“Whoever he is, Ms. Ortega... I... I will protect you!” Snowbelle declared. This made Ortega smile a little.

“I’m in your debt, Snowbelle,” Ortega announced.

For Ulrick, he felt like Ebonezer would always be brought up no matter the situation. And seeing he was after Adam... Well, that would mean he probably recognized he already left. And if he really did begin this sex ring, that would mean Ortega’s parents are still in danger. That would also mean... Is he going to continue to capture boys using that girl?

All this Ulrick still doubted, but then again, Isami no longer showed concern for Ortega's money as she made herself a bounty out of Ebonezer. What else will turn up? 

TO BE CONTINUED...


End file.
